Because I care
by Burnbee
Summary: What if Morty was unable to escape King Jellybean? What would Rick do? would he do anything at all?


"stop being such a fucking tease! you little twat!" the cruel voice echoed in his ears. Morty's muffled scream echoed slightly in the bathroom.

*with Rick*

Rick smirked laying his cards down.

"*burp* re-read'em and we-weep boys." Rick belched. the others groaned at him. Rick laughed and stood, shoving his winnings into his pocket. "I gotta piss." Rick muttered. he got up and walked over to the bathroom, looking around the place. he faintly noticed his grandson missing but shrugged it off. he'd been pissed and probably headed outside to cool off. he pushed the Thirsty Step bathroom door open.

"'scuse me." Mr. Jellybean smiled. Rick nodded at him then went in. he paused hearing a muffled groan and raised an eyebrow. not normally caring, but it sounded like a pained groan, a familiar pained groan. though he was too drunk to put a name to it, he recognized that he knew the groan. he walked over to a stall, the only closed stall. he belched and he knocked on the stall door.

"you okay i-in the-*burp*-there?" Rick ask. he looked down at the ground when he slipped and paused, red liquid. blood. he'd recognize blood anywhere, no matter how drunk he was. Rick frowned and knelt down to look under the stall, curiosity getting the best of him. there unconscious, naked, bound, and beaten, was his grandson. his eye's widened in shocked and he stood. "Mo-Morty!" Rick shouted, kicking at the door. "ha-hang *burp* ha-hang on Mor-Morty!" Rick shouted. he busted down the door and ran over to him, faintly noticing his shredded clothes on the floor. his tattered shirt had been used to tie his hands together and bound him to the toilet pipes. there was something stuffed in his mouth, probably a sock. what bothered Rick the most, was the blood that pooled between his grandsons legs. he knelt beside the unconscious teen and tried to shake him awake. "Mo-Morty? *burp* wake, wake up Morty." Rick said, shaking him gently. the boy didn't wake. Rick untied him quickly and threw the bonds aside. he scooped up the boy, who moaned unconsciously in protest. Rick pulled out his portal gun quickly, firing it. he poked his head in, making sure no one was in the bathroom. once he was sure, he stepped through and laid his grandson down gently. he rushed to get both of them some clothes, then locked the bathroom door. he scooped the boy back up again, only pausing to take his lab coat off and everything out of his pockets. he stepped into the shower, Morty cuddled to his chest, and turned on the water. Morty moaned as the water hit him, but didn't wake. Rick focused more on cleaning up the blood then anything else. they stayed in the shower until every drop of blood was gone, then Rick quickly dressed Morty, then himself.

"owww..." Morty moaned softly.

"ha-hang on Morty." Rick muttered carrying him into his room. he laid the boy on his cot and turned to his desk, searching through his stuff. he had to have some sort of pain killer somewhere. he found one and injected it into Morty's arm. Morty whined in pain.

"Ri-Rick?" Morty muttered softly. Rick looked at him, belching softly.

"st-stay here. I-I got, there's something I need- I got something I have to get *burp* fr-from the garage." Rick said. Morty's eye's snapped open fearfully, but before he could say anything, Rick was already out of the room. Morty yelpped when he moved. his entire body ached and burned. Rick teleported back in. "t-the pain meds I *burp* gave you will ki-kick in- should ki-kick in- y-you'll feel bett-*burp*-better in a minute." Rick muttered. he pulled a jar of something from his pocket.

"wh-whats th-that Rick?" Morty muttered.

"jus-just sit still *burp* Mo-Morty." Rick responded. he scooped some jell out of the jar and spread it all over the bruises on his Grandson, that he could see. he lifted Mortys shirt, knowing the boy would by now be too drugged up on the pain meds to move or protest much, but that didn't stop his heart throb of pity when the boy whimpered trying to jerk away. Rick bleched but didn't fuss at the boy. "s0-sorry Morty. i-it hurts *burp* I-I know." Rick muttered. Rick gave him something to knock him out quickly. he watched his grandson sleep, but it wasn't peaceful. Morty appeared to be having a nightmare, which wasn't unusual for him. he often had nightmares about their adventures, usually when either he or Rick almost died. it wasn't unusual for Rick to wake up in the morning with the boy curled up on his floor sleeping, or if it was extremely bad, he'd find him in his bed clinging to him terrified. Rick sighed and laid beside him, hoping to soothe the whimpering teen. he pulled the boy to his chest, but for once Morty didn't calm down, he got worse. having this happen before, Rick whispered softly to him, soothing him gently. he looked down when he felt Mortys hands fist in his lab coat and shirt. after a moment he calmed down and cuddled to his grandfather, the only one in the house that understood most of his nightmares and would help him. Rick narrowed his eye's, what are the odds the jellybean he'd bumped earlier wasn't the person who'd attacked his grandson? those were too slim for his liking. he took off his lab coat and laid it over his grandson gently. Morty curled up under it, but didn't wake.

"st-stay away fr-from m-me." Morty muttered softly in his sleep. Rick looked over and gently ruffled Morty's hair, belching softly.

"don-don't worry Morty. grandpa will take ca-care of him." Rick said softly. he pulled out his portal gun holster and strapped his portal gun in, grabbing another gun from his desk and putting it into it's own holster on his other hip. he looked over at his grandson again and pulled out his portal gun firing it at the wall. "I'll b-be back." Rick burped. he stepped through the portal. Morty jerked up and looked around frightened. he looked down at the lab coat and pulled it closer, finding the strong scent of alcohol, sweat, and a soft hint of cigarettes, to be comforting. he looked down, the handprints that had been on his wrists were gone. all that was left was the jelly substance a faintly remembered his grandfather rubbing on them. he was in his PJ's, they were ruined now. he'd bled straight through his underwear and pants, right onto Ricks sheets. Rick would be pissed. Morty shakily got to his feet, wincing as his body ached from the movement. he pulled the sheet off Ricks cot and headed to his own room, to change clothes. he put on some darkly colored pants, that were black. no one would see the blood then. he snuck downstairs and threw the laundry into the washing machine and turned it on.

"hey Morty, how was school?" Jerry ask. Morty gave a slight shrug and continued walking, unable to look his father in the eye's. he headed back upstairs and locked himself in his room. he curled up in his bed and stared at the wall in front of him. why did he have to be so innocent and stupid? so trusting that someone who looked like the were right out of a cartoon wouldn't hurt him. Morty sighed softly and curled up into a ball.

*Rick*

Rick stepped back through the portal to his room, making sure to keep quiet so he wouldn't wake his grandson. he was shocked to see Morty was gone. he wiped the goo off himself and frowned. where was his bed sheet? he walked over to the bed and moved the blanket, to make sure it hadn't just come off the cot wit Mortys struggling while he was a sleep. they were gone though, and in their place right where Morty had been laying, was a blood stain. Rick sighed pinching the bridge of his nose, the boy had agitated his injuries and they were bleeding again, but where was Morty?

"Mo-Morty?" Rick ask, looking around his room. he looked around and headed for Morty's bedroom. he tried to open the door and rolled his eye's. he belched. "M-Morty, a locked door *burp* will n-not stop m-me." Rick said.

"g-go-go away Rick." Morty muttered.

"no." Rick replied. he heard Morty give a soft sigh, but he didn't open the door. Rick shrugged and simply portaled through the door. Rick noticed the boy curled up under his blankets on the bed. "Morty." Rick belched. Morty looked over at him.

"w-wh-wha-what?" Morty glared. Rick seemed shocked for a moment but shrugged it off accounting for what had happened a mere few hours ago.

"w-wha-what did y-yo-you do wit-*belch*-with my sheets, y-you little shit?" Rick ask.

"wa-wash-washer." Morty muttered rolling over to lay on his back and look at him. "t-th-th-they were blo-bloody." Morty added. Rick belched.

"I'm sorry." Rick sighed. Morty raised an brow.

"wh-what? w-why a-ar-are _you_ so-sorry?" Morty ask.

"yo-you were gone fo-for at lea-*belch*-least twenty minutes, I-I sho-should have come lo-*belch*-looking for you." Rick responded.

"I-I'm fou-four-fo-fourteen. I don-don't need a ba-bab-baby-si-sitter." Morty huffed.

"no but your *belch* we-weak as hell an-and need someone to be there t-to protect you." Rick replied. Morty glared at him and sat up.

"wha-what do y-you want Rick?" Morty hissed. Morty got up, but Rick didn't miss the quick flash of pain in his eye's. "he-her-here t-to ma-mak-make f-fun o-o-of me? pr-pro-prov-prove y-you we-wer-were ri-rig-ri-right okay!?" Morty glared. "I-I-" Morty started.

"Morty, shut up." Rick glared. Morty got quiet, that was new, he usually continued to argue even if he was told to shut up. Rick made a mental note to try to come up with something to help his grandson get over this.

"Rick-" Morty started after a minute.

"he's dead." Rick belched. Morty stopped in his tracks.

"h-huh?" Morty ask.

"he's dead." Rick repeated. "I killed him." RIck added. Morty stared at him.

"w-wh-why wo-woul-would y-yo-you d-do th-th-that?" Morty ask confused. Rick sighed and hugged him tightly to his chest.

"be-becau-*belch*-because despite what y-you think, *belch* be-because I care." Rick said softly, holding his grandson tighter.


End file.
